Em's Whole30

[SaoirseSea]

Day 1. 

Ugh. I planned to use this past weekend to get everything ready for my Whole30. After prepping a bullet journal with meal plans I laid on the couch and spent the day watching Hulu. Not my finest hour. So I woke up on Day 1 to a pretty pathetic looking fridge. Breakfast was eggs and leftover kale. Not the most yummy but okay.

Midday I took a break from work, sat down to make a shopping list, couldn't really focus, gave up on the list and dragged myself to the store, where I bought some random Whole30-friendly ingredients. My head is killing me. So I made some coffee, which seems to be helping.

I've been really sluggish lately. Low-grade depression. I see everything through this murky lens, including the Whole30. I know that if I eat better I'll feel better, but right now this is just a thought with no passion to animate it. 

[doubledee]

We have the same start day--and I'm feeling pretty crappy today too. Here's to doing better, and feeling better soon!

[Pandora Black]

Hang in there! I felt terrible for a solid 10 days. Then it was like someone flipped a switch and suddenly I felt way better!

[SaoirseSea]

Day 2-3:

I slept well last night. And long. Luckily I didn't have to start work 'til later so I could sleep as long as I wanted to.

No headaches the last two days, but I got super tired halfway through Day 2. I've always had a problem with getting myself to eat before I'm totally famished. I just keep working, pushing through even though I'm out of fuel. I just don't know how to care for myself. I suppose this is one of those troubled relationships to food they talk about. I'd like to get better with that.

Today, Day 3, I had a little more energy. Kinda crashed around 5.

I still don't have it together with the shopping and cooking. I fantasized about making all sorts of delicious food but haven't had the energy to plan. I've been sticking to the diet, though. Just making simple stuff.

[SaoirseSea]

Day 5:

Slept poorly, woke depressed. Had a hard time getting out of bed. Not super, super depressed, but no motivation to do anything. And feeling sad, too, for no particular reason.

One good thing: Each day I have a little more energy. Once I get going my mood lifts. 

It's 11 pm. I should go to bed, but can't stop looking at dumb stuff on YouTube. I'd like to get better about sleep hygiene. Putting away the electronics early in the evening. Just reading a book, or cooking, or chatting til bedtime. I kinda hope Whole30 will spill over into other healthy habits. But one thing at a time.

[SaoirseSea]

Halfway point:

Good things: I haven't broken any rules. My mood, on average, is much, much better.

Not-so-great things: My eating behaviors have not improved. I don't eat until I'm really hungry. Actually, I don't even think about preparing a meal until I'm way past the point where my body run out of calories. This means I spend a lot of time feeling weak, confused and slightly depressed.

My goals for the second half:

Figure out a good shop/cook plan.

Stick to that plan! Make it a priority. 

Go beyond the letter of the law, and embody the spirit of a healthy relationship to food.

 

[ShannonM816]

Would it be helpful to cook several days' worth of food at once, so you've got good made up that you just need to heat? You could grill or bake some chicken, make up a batch of soup or stew or chili, hard boil eggs, brown a pound or two of ground meat, or make up a big container of tuna salad -- choose two or three of these for a week. Roast a bunch of root vegetables, and wash and chop a bunch of other vegetables to cook quickly in stir fries or to throw into salads. Make some mayo and maybe one or two other sauces or dressings. At meal time, everything should be ready for you to heat and eat. (There's a more in depth set of instructions for this from Mel Joulwan, the author of the Well Fed cookbooks here: http://meljoulwan.com/2010/01/14/paleo-kitchen-the-method-behind-my-madness/)

Have you considered setting a timer for each meal -- so wake up, eat breakfast, set a timer for 4-5 hours (or maybe earlier than that if you need to prepare a meal), then when you finish lunch, set the timer again for dinner? Long term this probably isn't a perfect solution, but temporarily to make yourself get in the habit of stopping to eat, it might be helpful.